1948
Endre Szervánsky (1911-1977)
Serenade for String Orchestra (1947-1948)
Mieczysław Weinberg (1919-1996)
Concertino for Violin and String Orchestra, op. 42 (1948)
Rezsö Sugár (1919-1988)
Divertimento for String Orchestra (1948)
Grażyna Bacewicz (1909-1969)
Concerto for String Orchestra (1948)
Erdödy Chamber Orchestra/Zsolt Szefcsik (violin)
rec. 2021, Budapest, Hungary
DUX 1802 [73]
I am all for intelligently ‘themed’ programmes on discs like this. Not only were all these works first performed in the same year, but they have a strong connection in their chosen medium, string orchestra. The fine Erdödy Chamber Orchestra, based in Budapest, was founded in 1994 by the violinist Zsolt Szefcsik, who leads on this CD, and is also the soloist in the Weinberg concerto. The orchestra has a commitment to Hungarian music, though two of the works presented her are by composers of Polish origin.
The year which is the title of the disc, 1948, is laden with significance. Not only was it the year in which the Soviet regime took power in Hungary, it was also the date of Zhdanov’s cultural purges in the USSR, which saw Weinberg arrested, and released only after the intervention of no less a person than Dimitri Shostakovich.
The Hungarian-born composer Szervánsky’s Serenade which opens the programme is the least demanding work here, though it’s by no means unattractive. It is well written for the strings, with a real, if conservative, understanding of the nature of the medium, and a total lack of ‘special effects’. The second movement, Quasi minuetto, is perhaps the most engaging, even if it is a notably heavy-footed minuet.
The Weinberg that follows is a really fine piece, typical of its composer and his distinctive style. The writing for orchestra and soloist is entirely idiomatic, and Weinberg preserves the traditional three-movement profile of the concerto. None of the movements is particularly quick, and the first movement, Allegretto cantabile, unfolds in an almost languid way, with the soloist taking the lead from the outset. The middle movement is striking; an expressive cadenza for the solo violin gives way to a melody of unmistakably Jewish inflection. The third movement – again unhurried in character – is where the influence of Shostakovich might most strongly be felt, with its sinuous, repetitive theme. Szefcsik copes with the demanding solo part well, and with real musical understanding, though the recording is not especially generous to him. Lovers of Weinberg (of whom I am certainly one) will be pleased to hear this interpretation, but I would still identify Gidon Kremer’s passionate and imaginative reading on ECM as the most convincing one on disc.
Rezsö Sugár was born in Budapest, and was a pupil of Zoltán Kodály. His Divertimento for Strings is another impressive work, consisting of five highly contrasted movements. All of them are quite short, and each is distinctive in character. It is not surprising to find a strong folk-music element, given Sugár’s background and the influence of Kodály. But the shade of that other great Hungarian composer of the day, Kodály’s close friend Béla Bartók, is not far away either; indeed the theme of Sugár’s third movement, Vivace, robusto, is a dead ringer for the main theme of the finale of Bartók’s own Divertimento for Strings.
The disc ends with what was, for me, the greatest discovery among its contents. Grażyna Bacewicz’s name was virtually unknown in the wider musical world until a few years ago, when recordings started to appear, often on Polish labels (she was born in Łódź). The three-movement Concerto for String Orchestra is a powerful work, with strong musical material and a sure sense of purpose. The thrusting, urgent opening Allegro gives way to a spectral and very beautiful Andante, played with great intensity by the Erdödy CO. This is easily the most forward-looking of the works on the CD – Bacewicz’s music could easily have been written twenty or thirty years later than Szervánsky’s, for example. The final Vivo is thrilling – a truly wild ride, with dense tonal clusters, and wonderful use of string techniques such as pizzicato and tremolando. Bacewicz was a fine violinist, and the writing for the strings throughout this work is outstanding.
A fascinating and highly enjoyable compilation then; all four of these pieces are well worth hearing, and the playing of the Erdödy orchestra is of a high standard.
Gwyn Parry-Jones
Published: November 17, 2022
